Drastic shifts in local retail districts – is tourism the driver?

Maaßenstrasse
Foto: Lukas Hoye

By Markus Kather and Paul Köper 

Are you looking for a small boutique or an antique shop in the north of Berlin’s Schöneberg district? Whereas a few years ago you would stumble into one of them at almost any corner, you are nowadays most probably out of luck. Instead, you will now be presented with an almost countless number of cheap restaurants. The balanced sectoral mix that once was a distinguishing feature of the neighborhood seems now partially replaced by a low quality food concourse. More and more traditional shops are pushed out of the neighborhood. The first assumption of the local authorities was that it’s the increasing number of visitors that is discussed widely at the moment in Berlin and that also can be felt Schöneberg. But is seems like the main reason are not tourists flooding the neighborhood or a change in consumer taste…